Research conducted by Material Focus amongst local authorities across the UK has identified that there were over 1,200 battery fires in bin lorries and waste sites across the UK in 2023, an increase of 71% from 700 in 2022.
With the sharp rise in the number of portable electrical items containing lithium-ion batteries comes an increased fire risk if they are thrown away instead of being recycled separately.
Lithium-ion batteries are hidden inside many everyday household electricals, from laptops, mobile phones and tablets, to electric toothbrushes and vapes. If they end up inside waste bins or recycling lorries with other materials this increases the chance that they can be punctured and self-combust, setting fire to the dry and flammable waste and recycling around them. They can lead to explosions and chemical exposure, but they also create their own oxygen, which means they can keep reigniting, prolonging incidents with smoke and fumes affecting neighbouring areas and communities for up to a week.
With so many electrical items now containing lithium-ion batteries, Mark Andrews, National Fire Chief’s Council Waste Fires lead said:
” We urge people to recycle electricals and batteries and not to dispose of them with general household waste. People are often surprised to hear that batteries can cause fires in both bin lorries and waste plants, but they do and as we use and dispose of more electronic devices these incidents are not rare.”
WRWA would like to remind residents that they should not put their batteries in a waste bin, recycling sack or wheely bin. Loose batteries, or electricals with batteries hidden inside, do need to be recycled separately. You’ll find advice on where you can drop them off on our website.
Any queries, please give us a call on 020 8871 2788 or email on info@wrwa.gov.uk.